Brave New World
Nicolaj is 12 years old and has spina bifida. With LEVO a whole new world has opened up to him. Now he can play ball, reach the top shelves in the refrigerator and stand up at the blackboard at school.

“We haven't had the LEVO wheelchair very long, but we already now see a lot of possibilities for Nicolaj. Possibilities he never had before. He is no longer dependent on a carer when he wants to get up. He is able to stand up at the blackboard at school, for instance, and he can play ball with his friends standing up,” Nicolaj's parents, Githa and Christian say.

Nicolaj has spina bifida and was paralysed from the abdomen down. He must stand up approx. every hour a day in order to strengthen his bones and muscles. At first the intention was to get Nicolaj a standing-support, but then his parents heard about LEVO.

“It sounded just like the chair for Nicolaj. We don’t need to plan when it's time to lift him from wheelchair to standing-support. Now he can just get up whenever it suits him. He has got a quite different freedom with LEVO,” Nicolaj's parents explain.

Nicolaj can choose to stand or just raise the chair gradually. The changing positions during the day are good for Nicolaj's body and his general well-being. Also Nicolaj's physiotherapist is pleased with the LEVO chair because it is now easier to stretch Nicolaj's hips, knees etc. To Nicolaj's great delight, LEVO means less stretch exercises. The many physical advantages of LEVO are tangible. And so are the freedom and the social benefits those LEVO offers. For Nicolaj the LEVO chair has made a lot of things easier and more fun to participate in.

"With LEVO Nicolaj has got a quite different freedom"

“At home Nicolaj can now take his cloths down from the wardrobe upper shelves all by himself, he can reach his things in the racks, and he can help out with the cooking. Also, Nicolaj has always been fond of playing miniature golf, and now when he is able to stand up, it is much easier for him to participate,” Nicolaj's parents say.

Nicolaj needs to go to the bathroom approx. every 3 hours to empty his bladder. As he cannot yet insert a catheter by himself, Nicolaj's parents or carers have previously had to put him onto a bed so they could insert the catheter while he was lying down. That was a hard and time-consuming job.

“With the LEVO chair we can now insert the catheter in a standing position in the bathroom. This takes less time and is therefore much better for Nicolaj, but also for his parents as it was getting still more difficult for us to lift him back over into the wheelchair again,” Nicolaj's parents say.

It is also an advantage to be able to insert the catheter standing when Nicolaj is going places, as it is often hard to find a toilet with facilities to lie down. One important thing is that is has become easier for Nicolaj to empty his bladder. Another and just as important thing is that Nicolaj is able to pee standing up - just like his buddies and his dad.